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At Invested Development, we strive to make a global impact through our investments in innovative solutions to global challenges. The articles below look at the evolution of sustainable investing and explore what the future might look like for the space.

Kenya’s BRCK raises $1.2M to connect the last mile to the internet
July 9, 2014
Nairobi, Kenya

Ushahidi spinout BRCK Inc. announced today that it has closed a $1.2 million seed round. BRCK is solving last-mile connectivity problems with a device that can bring seamless internet connection to the most remote areas of the world.

Invested Development, an early stage impact investor, led the round for the Nairobi-based technology startup. Invested Development, Omvestments, Urban.us, Cheryl … read more

On Tuesday, the Obama Administration announced Beyond the Grid: a framework within the Power Africa initiative created to catalyze private investment in distributed energy solutions for the 240 million people living without household electricity in six targeted Sub-Saharan African nations. We are proud to be one of the 27 founding partners who have committed to investment of over $1 billion over the next five years.

At ID, we invest in for-profit social enterprises because we believe in their potential to create impact at scale. However, there are some misconceptions and barriers have prevented social ventures from receiving capital. In this week’s reading we hope to provide a better understanding of impact investing and the work that investors, NGOs, and policy makers are doing to remove the barriers.

This week, our thoughts are with the victims of the Boston Marathon Explosions. As with all tragedies, we must soldier on with daily life. Here’s news from the week that serve as a reminder of the good things that are happening in the world as a result of technology and business.

Social entrepreneurs have to do it all: innovate, develop solid business models, pitch them well, and measure impact. This week’s articles on impact investing cover all of these topics, as well as exciting ID partner and BSP Fund portfolio news.

“Impact Investing for the New Economy: People” by Atlee McFellin on Triple Pundit
Impact investing is different from the green movement of years past. The new mindset of investing for impact emphasizes a dual focus on sustainability and well being for both the environment and people. Emerging investment and lending models, such as our own Impact Factoring Fund, are more frequently … read more

2013 is already shaping up to be a big year for seed stage impact investment. Read what industry leaders like Ross Baird of Village Capital and Kevin Jones of SOCAP are saying, and what opportunities social entrepreneurs can take advantage of this January.

The industry is still buzzing after the fifth annual Social Capital Markets (SOCAP) Conference in San Francisco. In addition, there was big news this week on a key impact investment and updates from the unexpected players that have entered the market.… read more

By now, many of our readers are familiar with the Impact Factoring Fund (IFF). When we first introduced it, we knew it would solve a common problem for many startups in emerging markets. Since then, we have discovered that there is a range of applications for the IFF across a variety of sectors, including tablet sales, pay-as-you-go energy sales, and even carbon credits. The common thread is the working capital constraint that businesses face when … read more

The impact investing industry is preparing new programs, insights, and, most importantly, entrepreneurs to live up to the big predictions for 2013, which has already been claimed as “the year of impact investing.”… read more

Our portfolio companies exhibit determination and persistence in their journey to scale. We’re proud of all milestones, whether big or small, as they indicate growth and scale, allowing the benefit of innovative technologies to reach further. Promethean Power has made excellent progress so far in 2012, and today we’d like to share the most recent update on their journey.

Every week, we read dozens of articles on our favorite industry trends and relate to our investment thesis. We pick the most popular trend from the week and share the top articles along with our thoughts.

This week, we’re featuring news on financial innovation and impact investing.… read more

Over the past few years, ID has worked to catalyze risk capital for underserved markets. To date, we have done this with direct investments from our BSP Fund, business co-creation through our BETA program, and deal syndication with fellow investors. Now, we are ready to announce our latest effort to support high-growth enterprises working in underserved markets.

This week, we read about growing entrepreneurial opportunities in our target investment markets: India, Africa, and Latin America. The movement of human and financial capital in (and out) of emerging markets is increasing steadily thanks to changing demographics and blossoming economies. This presents exciting opportunities for investors and entrepreneurs alike.… read more

It’s the last week of the year, and we are surrounded by reflections on 2011 and resolutions for 2012. Here at Invested Development we have both. Our main ambitions for 2012 are to open our third office in India and test some innovative investment structures tailored especially for the techies in Nairobi. While we are excited about the prospects in India, Africa has made the biggest leaps and grabbed the headlines this year, notably from … read more

Editor’s Note: This is the third installment of Sean Smith’s series on Rich People, Nerds, and the Kenyan Context. Be sure to catch up on Part 1 and Part 2 if you missed them.

The Nerds

The Rich People are only relevant and useful if there are large numbers of “Nerds” that are hacking away at new technologies and scheming how to launch the next big thing. One of the most remarkable things about … read more

A cornerstone of our philosophy is to combine the efficiency of the free market with the heart of the social sector. Private investment and entrepreneurship will create sustainable development in emerging markets.

Every week we speak to entrepreneurs who are eagerly seeking financing for their start-ups. Despite the start-up moniker, many have been struggling for months and even years. They have probably passed up jobs, ended significant relationships, faced the ridicule of family and friends, and lost sleep over bills and bank accounts. They are, in a word, desperate.

It’s important for investors to recognize this. Look past the calm exterior, the confident pitch face, the … read more

Inevitably, Money creates power and with power comes great responsibility. Impact investors have the power to enable social enterprises to create change while developing solutions for underserved markets. Reflected in their mission statements, they also have the responsibility to work closely with social entrepreneurs to make this happen. The following articles from this week review the different responsibilities investors and entrepreneurs have and ways they fulfill them.

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Securities are offered solely through Bequia Securities, LLC, a US-registered broker-dealer located in Arlington, MA. Bequia Securities is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and is a member of FINRA/SIPC. Check the background of this firm at FINRA’s BrokerCheck. Invested Development is independent of Bequia Securities.